Heitor VILLA-LOBOS (1887-1959)

 

Bachianas Brasileiras (Complete)

 

CD 1

No.1 for ‘an orchestra of cellos’

No.2 for chamber orchestra

No.3 for piano and orchestra

 

CD 2

No.4 for orchestra

No.5 for voice and 8 cellos

No.6 for flute and bassoon

 

CD 3

No.7 for orchestra

No.8 for orchestra

No.9 for string orchestra

 

Rosana Lamosa (soprano), José Feghali (piano)

Nashville Symphony Orchestra/ Kenneth Schermerhorn

 

Heitor Villa-Lobos put Brazilian music on the cultural map, and standing out from his huge output of some 1500 works are the remarkable Bachianas Brasileiras, a collective homage to Bach ranging in scale from the instrumental to the full orchestral, and combining colourful Brazilian idioms with those of the Baroque era.

 

The Bachianas Brasileiras include some of Villa-Lobos’ best-known works: No.5 for soprano and cellos and No.2 ‘The Little Train of the Caipira’, a vivid evocation of a steam locomotive moving steadily across Brazil.

 

Each movement in the series has a Brazilian title (Ponteieo, Martelo, Modinha) and a European one (Prelude, Fugue, Aria). The influence of Bach is visible in all of the movements - though what is most striking is the colourful orchestration, arching melodies and pulsating rhythms.

 

Naxos 3cds 8557460-62